Uptake and impact of research for evidence-based practice: lessons from the Africa Health Systems Initiative Support to African Research Partnerships

Authors: Adrijana Corluka, Marc Cohen, Esmé Lanktree and Renée Larocque

Drugs for some but not all: inequity within community health worker teams during introduction of integrated community case management

The Ugandan health system now supports integrated community case management (iCCM) by community health workers (CHWs) to treat young children ill with fever, presumed pneumonia, and diarrhea. During an iCCM pi...

Authors: Hannah Faye G Mercader, Teddy Kyomuhangi, Denise L Buchner, Jerome Kabakyenga and Jennifer L Brenner

Introduction of mobile phones for use by volunteer community health workers in support of integrated community case management in Bushenyi District, Uganda: development and implementation process

A substantial literature suggests that mobile phones have great potential to improve management and survival of acutely ill children in rural Africa. The national strategy of the Ugandan Ministry of Health cal...

Authors: David Katuruba Tumusiime, Gad Agaba, Teddy Kyomuhangi, Jan Finch, Jerome Kabakyenga and Stuart MacLeod

A quasi-experimental assessment of the effectiveness of the Community Health Strategy on health outcomes in Kenya

Despite focused health policies and reform agenda, Kenya has challenges in improving households’ situation in poverty and ill health; interventions to address the Millennium Development Goals in maternal and c...

Authors: Rose Olayo, Charles Wafula, Evalyne Aseyo, Constantine Loum and Dan Kaseje

Perceptions of health stakeholders on task shifting and motivation of community health workers in different socio demographic contexts in Kenya (nomadic, peri-urban and rural agrarian)

The shortage of health professionals in low income countries is recognized as a crisis. Community health workers are part of a “task-shift” strategy to address this crisis. Task shifting in this paper refers t...

Authors: Beverly Marion Ochieng, Edith Akunja, Nancy Edwards, Diana Mombo, Leah Marende and Dan CO Kaseje

Validity and reliability of data collected by community health workers in rural and peri-urban contexts in Kenya

Reliability and validity of measurements are important for the interpretation and generalisation of research findings. Valid, reliable and comparable measures of health status of individuals are critical compo...

Authors: Careena Flora Otieno-Odawa and Dan Owino Kaseje

A randomised controlled trial to investigate effects of enhanced supervision on primary eye care services at health centres in Kenya, Malawi and Tanzania

Knowledge and skills of primary health care workers (PHCWs) in primary eye care have been demonstrated to be inadequate in several districts of Kenya, Malawi, and Tanzania. We tested whether enhanced supervisi...

Authors: Khumbo Kalua, Michael Gichangi, Ernest Barassa, Edson Eliah, Susan Lewallen and Paul Courtright

Pilot-testing service-based planning for health care in rural Zambia

Human resources for health (HRH) planning in Zambia, as in other countries, is often done by comparing current HRH numbers with established posts, without considering whether population health needs are being ...

Authors: Fastone M Goma, Gail Tomblin Murphy, Miriam Libetwa, Adrian MacKenzie, Selestine H Nzala, Clara Mbwili-Muleya, Janet Rigby and Amy Gough

Supporting middle-cadre health care workers in Malawi: lessons learned during implementation of the PALM PLUS package

The government of Malawi is committed to the broad rollout of antiretroviral treatment in Malawi in the public health sector; however one of the primary challenges has been the shortage of trained health care ...

Authors: Sumeet Sodhi, Hastings Banda, Damson Kathyola, Martias Joshua, Faye Richardson, Emmay Mah, Hayley MacGregor, Emmanuel Kanike, Sandy Thompson, Lara Fairall, Eric Bateman, Merrick Zwarenstein and Michael J Schull

Medical and economic benefits of telehealth in low- and middle-income countries: results of a study in four district hospitals in Mali

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of telehealth on 1) the diagnosis, and management in obstetrics and cardiology, 2) health care costs from patients’ perspectives, 3) attendance at health centre...

Authors: Cheick Oumar Bagayoko, Diakaridia Traoré, Laurence Thevoz, Soumahila Diabaté, David Pecoul, Mahamoudane Niang, Georges Bediang, Seydou Tidiane Traoré, Abdrahamane Anne and Antoine Geissbuhler

Prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Kenya: challenges to implementation

The prevention of mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is lauded as one of the more successful HIV prevention measures. However, despite some gains in the prevention of mother-to-...

Authors: Elsabé du Plessis, Souradet Y Shaw, Mary Gichuhi, Larry Gelmon, Bensen B Estambale, Richard Lester, Joshua Kimani and Lisa S Avery